SEOUL โ WINTER 2021
The cold had teeth. It bit through the concrete canyons of Yeouido and settled in the bones of the city. In his sterile committee-room-turned-war-room on the 42nd floor, Lee Je-Hoon felt none of it. The chill he was fighting was digital, financial, and deeply personal.
The Oh Group's "strategic digital defense fund" was now his to wield. A nine-figure war chest, its access logs scrubbed, its purpose vague enough to be a blanket authorization. Oh Soo-jae had handed him a scalpel and told him to perform surgery on a tumor inside her own body.
๐๐๐ง ๐ฅ๐ง๐ค๐ฉ๐ค๐๐ค๐ก ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐. ๐๐ง๐๐ค๐ง๐๐ฉ๐ฎ 1: ๐๐๐๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค๐ง๐. ๐๐ง๐๐ค๐ง๐๐ฉ๐ฎ 2: ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ข๐ค๐ก๐. ๐๐๐ข๐๐ก๐๐ฃ๐: 72 ๐๐ค๐ช๐ง๐จ.
Je-Hoon's fingers flew across three keyboards, each connected to a separate, air-gapped system. On the main screen, a map of Singapore's financial web glowed, with White Sands Capital highlighted in angry redโfrozen, isolated.
"The MAS freeze was triggered by an 'anonymous tip' about money laundering from a shell corporation in the British Virgin Islands," Je-Hoon muttered, data streams reflected in his eyes. "A shell we've never used."
๐ผ๐ฃ๐๐ก๐ฎ๐จ๐๐จ: ๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ ๐จ๐๐๐ก๐ก ๐๐จ ๐ ๐๐ค๐ง๐๐๐ง๐ฎ. ๐๐ฉ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐๐ก ๐ก๐๐๐๐จ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ ๐จ๐๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐ข ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐ ๐ช๐จ๐๐ ๐๐ค๐ฉ๐ ๐๐ฎ ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ช๐ฅ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ง๐๐ฏ๐ค๐ฃ ๐พ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฉ๐๐ก. ๐๐๐ ๐ข๐ค๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐จ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐ง๐ข'๐จ ๐ง๐๐๐ค๐ง๐๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ฅ๐๐ง ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐๐ก ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ ๐ช๐จ.
"So the leak is someone with access to Oh Group's external legal architecture, not just committee data," Je-Hoon concluded. "That narrows it to the senior legal counsel or the deputy director of mergers."
๐๐ง๐ค๐๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฎ: 91%. ๐๐ค๐ฌ, ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฌ.
To unfreeze White Sands, they couldn't just prove innocence. They had to provide the Monetary Authority of Singapore with a bigger, juicier targetโone that would make their freeze look like proactive genius rather than a mistake.
Je-Hoon accessed the Oh Group's raw intelligence feed, the one from his committee seat. He began weaving a counter-narrative. He traced a series of actual suspicious transactionsโhidden fees, inflated invoicesโflowing from a Horizon Capital-controlled fund in Singapore through a series of cosmetic surgery clinics in Gangnam, a classic won-to-crypto laundering pipeline.
He didn't fabricate. He connected. Marco's cross-referencing found the patterns the authorities had missed.
He then packaged this intelligence, anonymized but impeccably sourced, and used Oh Soo-jae's political channel to feed it directly to a specific, ambitious investigator at the MAS. The message was implicit: You were tricked into freezing the wrong target. Here's the real one. Take it, get the credit, and let our little mistake go.
It was a trade. A prisoner exchange in the currency of scandals.
---
THE MOLE: A TRAP OF LIGHT
While the Singapore thaw processed, Je-Hoon set the trap for the mole. He used the committee's communication system to send two different, highly sensitive "leaks" to the two suspects.
To the senior legal counsel, he "accidentally" forwarded a memo about Oh Group preparing a hostile takeover of a Horizon-linked battery manufacturerโa tempting piece of intel for Min-jun.
To the deputy director of mergers, he "leaked" details of a secret liquidity problem at an Oh Group subsidiaryโinformation that would be precious to short-sellers allied with Horizon.
Then he waited. Marco monitored all digital exhaust from both suspects' devicesโoutgoing calls, encrypted message pings, even power usage spikes that might indicate secure data transmission.
๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ฉ๐ค๐ง๐๐ฃ๐... ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฉ 1 (๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐พ๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐จ๐๐ก): ๐๐ค ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ. ๐๐ค๐ช๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ข๐ข๐จ. ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฉ 2 (๐ฟ๐๐ฅ๐ช๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐ฟ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฉ๐ค๐ง ๐๐๐ข): ๐๐๐๐ช๐ง๐ ๐ก๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐. 3:14 ๐ผ๐. ๐ฟ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฉ ๐จ๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ข๐๐ฉ๐๐๐๐จ ๐ก๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ค๐๐ช๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ฉ. ๐๐ง๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ง๐ค๐ช๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ค๐ช๐๐ ๐ ๐จ๐๐๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐จ๐๐ง๐ซ๐๐ง ๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐ฌ๐๐ฃ. ๐๐ฃ๐๐ฅ๐ค๐๐ฃ๐ฉ: ๐๐ค๐ง๐๐ฏ๐ค๐ฃ ๐พ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฉ๐๐ก'๐จ ๐จ๐๐๐ช๐ง๐ ๐๐ฃ๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ง๐ช๐๐ฉ๐ช๐ง๐.
Deputy Director Kim. A man with twenty years at Oh Group, a daughter in college abroad, and a recently disclosed gambling debt.
Je-Hoon didn't confront him. He compiled a dossier: the digital forensics, the debt, the Taiwanese server logs. He sent it to Oh Soo-jae with a single-line note: "The leak. Your move."
Her response came an hour later: "Handled. He resigned for personal reasons this morning. No severance. No prosecution. He'll be quiet."
The clean, ruthless efficiency of it sent a new kind of chill down Je-Hoon's spine. She hadn't just fired a traitor; she had extinguished him with silence, likely with the debt paid and a threat lodged against his daughter's future. It was a reminder of the world he was now inโa world where problems were not solved, but disappeared.
---
THE THAW & THE TETHER
At the 48-hour mark, the notification came. White Sands Capital's accounts were unfrozen. The MAS had quietly closed its inquiry, citing "new evidence." On the same day, news broke of a raid on a network of Gangnam clinics for financial crimes, with tentative links to "overseas investment funds." Horizon Capital's Singapore office went into lockdown.
The counterstrike had been parried and returned.
Je-Hoon stood at the window of the war-room, the first faint glow of dawn painting the Han River. He had done it. He had secured his assets, protected his position, and rooted out the enemy within. He should have felt triumph. Instead, he felt the weight of the anchor he had cut loose.
๐๐ข๐ค๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ก ๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐: 15%. ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ง๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐จ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐จ. ๐๐๐๐ค๐ข๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐ง๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ.
"How is she?" The question left his lips before he could stop it.
๐๐๐ข ๐๐ช๐ฃ๐. ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ฃ๐จ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฉ ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ช๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐ฟ๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ฉ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ฉ ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐๐ง๐ข๐๐. ๐๐๐ง๐๐ค๐ง๐ข๐๐ฃ๐๐: ๐๐ญ๐๐๐ก๐ก๐๐ฃ๐ฉ. ๐๐๐๐ช๐ง๐๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ฉ๐ช๐จ: ๐ฃ๐ค ๐๐ฃ๐ค๐ข๐๐ก๐๐๐จ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐. ๐๐๐ ๐๐จ ๐จ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฅ๐ง๐ค๐จ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐จ๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ค๐ง๐ฉ๐ง๐๐จ๐จ.
Safe. Because of him. Because of the deal he'd made. The knowledge was a cold comfort.
The door to the war-room hissed open. Oh Soo-jae entered, alone. She wore not a suit, but a simple black turtleneck and slacks. She looked human, for once. And tired.
"The thaw is confirmed," she said, her voice quieter than usual. "And Kim is gone. You work fast."
"You provided the tools."
She walked to the window, standing beside him, looking at the same dawn. "My father built this view. He said you could see every enemy from here. He was wrong. The worst ones are already inside the building."
She turned to him. "You've passed every test. The commission, the committee, the counterstrike. You're not just a useful tool, Alexander Lee. You're becoming a strategic asset."
He said nothing. Waiting.
"The game with Horizon isn't over. Min-jun is a dog on a leash, but the hand holding it belongs to the Jincheon Group. They're still angry about the shipbuilding deal you killed. They want revenge, and they're using Horizon to get it."
"What's the next move?"
"A party," she said, a faint, icy smile touching her lips. "The annual Jincheon Group charity gala. In two weeks. It's where the real power brokers meet behind the masks of philanthropy. I'm expected to attend. You will be my plus-one."
Je-Hoon's mind reeled. A public appearance. At the heart of enemy territory. "As Alexander Lee?"
"As Alexander Lee, my newly appointed Special Advisor on Strategic Risk. A title I just created." Her eyes held his. "It's time to stop hiding in the shadows and in committee rooms. It's time to show them the face of the calculative force that's been picking them apart. Let Min-jun see you standing next to me. Let the Jincheon patriarchs look you in the eye. Let them wonder. Fear lives in the unknown. We're going to give them a face to fear, and then we're going to show them exactly what that fear is worth."
It was a declaration. A move from covert ops to psychological warfare.
"And after the party?" Je-Hoon asked.
"After the party," she said, her gaze returning to the city, "we stop reacting. We make them regret they ever saw our faces. We drain their funds, poison their deals, and turn their allies against them. Not with bullets. With decimals." She looked back at him, and in her eyes, he saw not just the Ice Queen, but a fellow strategist who had been fighting a lonely war for years. "Welcome to the inner circle, Je-Hoon. It's colder here."
She left as silently as she came.
Je-Hoon stood alone as the sun finally breached the horizon, flooding the room with a light that felt merciless and revealing.
He had survived the counterstrike. He had earned his place. He had secured his anchor, even if he could no longer hold her line.
Now, he was being marched to the front lines, given a uniform, and told to show his face to the enemy.
๐๐ฉ๐ง๐๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐จ๐๐๐ฃ๐จ๐๐ค๐ฃ: ๐๐๐๐จ๐ 2. ๐๐ช๐๐ก๐๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐จ๐ค๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ. ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐๐๐ค๐ก๐ค๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐ค๐ฅ๐๐ง๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐๐ฃ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐. ๐๐ง๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ค๐ง ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ง๐ค๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ.
He was no longer a ghost, or a tool, or an observer.
He was a standard, raised high on a hill, daring the storm to come.
And for the first time, he was not standing alone.
---
[End of Episode 10]
[Status: Singapore Thawed. Mole Eliminated. Capital Restored.]
[Wealth: Fully Liquid + Oh Group War Chest Access.]
[Key Development: Appointed Oh Soo-jae's 'Special Advisor.' Public debut at Jincheon Gala ordered.]
[Next Episode: ???????]